


Will It Go Round In Circles

by YaminoBossBitch



Series: White Lines, Gold Teeth [4]
Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: 1970s AU, Action, Blood, Drugs, Graphic depiction of drug use, Guns, Homelessness, M/M, Mafia AU, Police, Poverty, Prequel, child endangerment, established Beerus/whis, homophobic slur
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:21:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25131562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YaminoBossBitch/pseuds/YaminoBossBitch
Summary: A prequel to Vices & Virtues, can be read before, during, or after.Goku just moved to Miami and is staying with a friend. When his friend runs into trouble with the mafia, Goku steps in to do a job to repay the debt. It was supposed to be a simple job, but things quickly turn on their heads.
Relationships: Beerus/Whis (Dragon Ball)
Series: White Lines, Gold Teeth [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1541698
Comments: 5
Kudos: 11
Collections: Baby Buu’s Favs





	Will It Go Round In Circles

**Author's Note:**

> CW: guns, homelessness, graphic depiction of drug use, poverty, child endangerment, drugs, police, homophobic slur, blood 
> 
> Here’s Goku’s prequel! I had a lot of fun writing this and I hope you all enjoy it too.

The cramped apartment got unbearably hot whenever the oven was used. Goku sat in front of the fan which barely helped to reduce the unbearable summer heat.

“Jeez, I knew it was hot here but I didn’t know it was so sticky, too!” He whined.

“Yeah, that’s Florida for you.” Kai said as he worked over the stove.

“Ugh, it’s so humid. It’s like living in a sauna.”

“No one made you move here. This apartment isn’t exactly designed for two people, you know.”

“You said you didn’t mind,” Goku pouted.

“I owed a friend a favor, that’s why you’re here. Besides, it’s temporary.”

“I know, I know.” Goku said.

They ate breakfast together over the small, worn card table in Kai’s kitchen. Goku had only been there for a few days, but Miami was one of the most unusual places he had ever been. It was like it was always summer, and everyone was always partying. For Goku, who had spent so long working hard and running from danger, the idea of life as a never ending festival was foreign but intriguing.

“So, what kind of business do you have again?”

“It’s an auto shop. Well, sort of. We mainly specialize in customizing cars. You know, repainting them in different colors, replacing engines. Like hot rods.” Kai explained between mouthfuls of food.

“Wow, that sounds cool! You’re not hiring by any chance, are you?”

“Heh, nice try. But no. I’m still trying to get it off the ground, actually.”

“Oh.” Goku said. This, in Goku’s opinion, was the worst part of being on the run. He was always having to find new work, and it was usually not easy. He couldn’t exactly go through the local classifieds.

“That reminds me,” Kai said, a smile threatening to break across his face. “You know what grinds my gears? _Clutch failure!_ ” He began snorting and laughing very hard at his own joke. Goku didn’t get it.

_BAM BAM BAM_. A loud knock at the door startled both of them. Kai went very pale. He stood slowly and crossed to the front door. He peered through the peephole.

He quickly dropped to a crouch as if he were trying to hide.

“Oh, crap, it’s Beerus!” He hissed through gritted teeth.

“Huh? What’s a Beerus?”

“Come on!” Kai grabbed him by the arm and started to pull him across the apartment. “Listen to me very carefully, Goku. I borrowed some money from the mob,” He explained. Goku’s eyes went wide. “I know, okay? I know how stupid it was, but I was desperate. If my business goes under, I go under. He’s here to collect but I don’t have the money right now.”

“What’s going to happen?”

“Nothing good, I’m sure. Listen, this guy is dangerous and he doesn’t mess around. Whatever you do, do not come out of this room. The last thing I need is for you to say something to piss him off.” Kai said. He pushed Goku into the bedroom and slammed the door.

_BAM BAM BAM BAM_. The loud knocks sounded again.

“C-coming!” Kai squeaked.

As Kai ran to the door, Goku cracked the bedroom door open just enough so that he could see what was happening. Kai opened the front door and two men walked in. One was a very tall, very thin young man, dressed in colorful, floral patterns. The other man was older, with a feline-like appearance, wearing what appeared to be a fairly nice suit.

“Oh, Mr. Beerus, Mr. Whis, what a pleasant surprise! Please, come in, take a seat!” Kai stammered. The tall man, Whis, looked around and scoffed, as if the very idea of sitting in such cheap and ugly furniture was beneath him. Instead, he leaned against the back of the couch languidly and lit a cigarette.

“You know why we’re here, don’t you, Kai?” Said Beerus.

“U-uh, w-well—“

“The 12 large you still owe? Ringing any bells?”

“N-no—I mean yes, yes of course, but—“

“But?” Beerus interrupted. Kai swallowed hard.

“Y-you see, Mr. Beerus, sir, this month has been a little slow for my business, a-and—“ as he stumbled over his words, Whis began walking around the apartment, as if inspecting things. Kai watched out of the corner of his eye, seeming worried about what he would do.

“Kai,” Beerus said in a severe tone. “We had an agreement, didn’t we?” He leaned very close to Kai’s face. “I loaned you $12,000 with the understanding that you’d pay it back within the year. I was even very generous to give you an extra six months on top of that. And now you’re telling me you still don’t have it? That’s very disappointing. How do you feel, Whis? Aren’t you disappointed?”

Whis was standing in the living room. He put a foot on Kai’s bulky, old, black-and-white television.

“I’m very disappointed.” He said, and then he pushed with his foot, knocking the TV down. There was a loud cracking sound as the glass shattered.

Beerus was grinning wickedly.

“P-please, I almost have it! I just need a little more—“

“Time? Kai, I’ve given you more than enough time. If I have to come back here again, it’s not going to be pretty. Or did you think you’d be protected by the _armed man hiding in your bedroom?_ ” Beerus said this last part loudly so Goku would hear it. Goku jolted.

“W-what? Oh, him? He-he’s just a houseguest, Mr. Beerus!” Kai babbled frantically.

“I’d like to meet him.” He said.

“R-right,” Kai’s throat went dry. “Goku, come out here and meet our guests,” he called. Goku opened the bedroom door the rest of the way and walked up to Beerus.

“Hey,” Goku said.

“G-Goku! Show some respect! Mr. Beerus is a very important man!” Kai cried. Goku was a little confused by this, as he didn’t see how he had done anything rude, especially considering how Beerus’ associate had just broken Kai’s television. But he tried again, as formal as he knew how to be.

“Uh, good morning, Mr. Beerus, sir, my name is Goku it is a pleasure to meet you on this lovely day.” He said, bowing deeply as if speaking to royalty.

Kai groaned. Beerus held out his hand.

“Gun.” He said.

“Huh? Oh, this?” Goku took his gun out of the holster and handed it to him. “I just have that on me for protection. I wasn’t planning on using it or anything.” Beerus handed the gun to Whis, who emptied the chamber.

“And who exactly are you?”

“I’m a friend of Kai’s. Well, like a friend of a friend? I just moved here and he’s letting me crash on his couch while I get settled.” Goku explained, all the while, Kai attempted to get him to stop talking by glaring at him from behind his sunglasses.

“You can afford to take in this homeless guy but not to pay me?” Beerus asked.

“Hey, I’m not homeless! I’m...Huh, I guess technically I _am_ homeless, aren’t I?” Goku began laughing.

“Please, Mr. Beerus, I’m just doing him a favor is all. He just needed a place to stay while he gets a job, that’s all! It’s just for a couple weeks, tops!”

“You’re not hiring, are you?” Goku asked. Kai went very pale as he looked at him.

“Excuse me?” Beerus said.

“I’ve done some stuff, like hired gun stuff, running, that kind of thing, like on-and-off since I was 12. Y’know, if you’re looking for anything useful.”

“Goku!” Kai cried, exasperated. “I-I apologize, Mr. Beerus—“

But Beerus didn’t look upset at all. In fact, he was smiling. Whis stepped over and stood beside him.

“ _¿En qué estás pensando?_ ” He asked. Beerus looked up at him, his eyes glimmering just a little.

“ _Creo que tengo una idea_.” He replied.

“What are they saying?” Goku whispered.

“How should I know?” Kai hissed back.

“Goku, was it?” Beerus said.

“Yeah?”

“I might just have a job for you.”

“Really?”

“We’ll make a deal,” Beerus said. “I’ll give you a job, and if you impress me, we won’t kill your financially insecure friend. And if you _really_ impress me, you’ll have a job.”

“Wow, really? That’s perfect!”

“Wait, Goku—“ Kai said. Beerus shot a glare in his direction.

“Is there a problem, Kai?” He asked in a stern tone.

“Wh-what? No! No problem at all!” Kai blabbered.

“Are you sure about this?” Whis asked softly.

“Of course. I like this kid. I want to see if he could be useful,” Beerus dug a card out of his wallet. “Meet me at this address at 11:00 PM tonight.”

“Okay!” Goku grinned.

The two of them walked out the door. Kai slowly sank to the floor, clutching his chest and sweating.

“Goku, you don’t have to do this.” He said.

“Why wouldn’t I? Your debt gets repaid, I get a job! All our problems get solved!”

“This is a dangerous man! He’s ruthless. He doesn’t let a lot of people work closely with him. I know he’s got one gun who has been working for him, and most people who encounter him are worse for it. If things don’t go Beerus’ way, he’ll drop you into the harbor.”

“Ah, I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Goku shrugged. “He seemed a lot nicer than some of the guys I’ve worked for.” Kai sighed heavily.

“Just don’t get yourself killed. I don’t need that on my conscience.”

Goku stuffed the paper with the address on it into his pocket.

“Who was that tall guy he was with?”

“Whis? I don’t really know much about him. I’ve heard the rumors about those two but I didn’t believe it. But they did seem awfully close, didn’t they?” Kai said, looking in the direction they had left suspiciously.

“Huh? What do you mean? What rumors?” Goku asked. Kai looked like he was going to answer, then stopped himself.

“Never mind. It’s better you don’t know. I can’t trust that you won’t say something about it to their faces.”

Goku arrived at the address. He was a little surprised that it was a small office building. Beerus was waiting outside, smoking a joint.

“ _Oye_ ,” he said as Goku approached.

“Hi, Mr. Beerus. Is Mr. Whis not joining us?”

“Not tonight,” he said.

“So, what is it you need me to do?”

“It’s an easy job. Some little street punks stole from me. Three kids. Took all the cash out of my wallet and my Beretta out of my car.”

“I won’t hurt any kids.”

“Good, ‘cause I’m not asking you to. I just want my stuff back. And for you to scare those little bastards enough that they know never to take from me again.” Beerus said.

“Oh, okay. I can do that.” Goku said.

“When you’re done, wait outside of warehouse 12. I have some business over there. Word has it those kids usually hang out in Overtown. Find them and make them sorry.”

Overtown was not a nice area. That didn’t bother Goku so much. He grew up in an area that was pretty similar. He knew how to navigate neighborhoods like it. He wandered the streets and checked some of the abandoned buildings. He found a building that looked like it used to be a nightclub. The windows were broken and it was tagged with graffiti that read “Emperor Pilaf” in stylized letters.

He poked his head in and saw three kids, none older than 12. It seemed they had made a little hangout in the building. They were sitting around the bar, talking and laughing.

“Who are you?” The one in the middle said. He appeared to be the leader, by Goku’s best guess.

“You must be Emperor Pilaf,” Goku said. He couldn’t help but smile a little

“Who wants to know?”

“You took some things that don’t belong to you.”

The kids looked at each other and then laughed.

“I take all kinds of things that don’t belong to me! I’m Emperor Pilaf and I’m going to rule this whole city! Everything here is going to belong to me someday!” He boasted.

“Hey, it’s good to have goals. But the guy you stole from us pretty peeved. Mr. Beerus just wants his stuff back and you kids can go, okay?” Goku said.

All three kids paled.

“M-Mr. Beerus?” The one to the right said.

“ _The_ Mr. Beerus?” The little girl to the right said.

The three of them looked to each other for a moment.

“CHEESE IT!” Pilaf screamed. The three of them hopped over the bar and ran.

“Hey!” Goku cried. He chased after them. They scrambled through the back area and out the backdoor. Goku followed them into the alleyways and down the streets. They were fast, but Goku was never too far behind.

They dipped between buildings and through alleys, eventually finding an open door to dive into. Goku followed and stumbled into guns everywhere.

Beerus was standing there, looking absolutely baffled. His gun was trained on a man with a mouselike appearance, surrounded by four other men, whose guns were aimed at Beerus.

The kids froze. Goku stared around in confusion.

“Goku? What the hell are you doing here?” Beerus growled.

“Sorry, Mr. Beerus, they ran and I—“

“Oh crap,” the little doglike boy whimpered. “Pilaf, what do we do?” But Pilaf was wide-eyes, looking between Beerus and the mouselike man.

“Who the hell are they?” The mouselike man demanded.

“Don’t worry about them, Quitela, your business is with me.” Beerus said. Goku leaned down to the kids.

“We should get out of here,” he said, but as he spoke, Quitela aimed his gun toward them.

“What are you whispering about?”

“I told you not to worry about them!” Beerus growled. “Why don’t you worry about where my product is, huh?” Quitela’s brows furrowed.

“I already told you, Beerus, I don’t know.”

“You don’t know because you didn’t do what you were supposed to!”

“Things got fucked up, okay? I didn’t want it to play out like this, Beerus, you pushed me!” Quitela said.

“Get your gun off the kids.” Goku said in a severe voice. Quitela looked back at him.

“Who the fuck even are you? You’re one of Beerus’ boys? You know how many dumb kids like you he grabs off the street so he can have someone take the fall when things go south? He’ll use you and leave you for dead!”

Goku drew his own gun. The kids cowered and hid behind him.

“I don’t care about any of that. Get your gun away from them.” He said.

“Do you know who I am?”

“Nope,” Goku said.

“Don’t be a hero, kid,” Beerus said.

Goku could hear the kids whispering. It probably wasn’t a good sign, but he couldn’t worry about that now.

“I’m not letting these kids get hurt.”

The little girl stepped in front of Goku and produced a gun that was almost bigger than she was.

“Everybody hold it!” She screamed.

“That’s right, Mai!” Pilaf cried. “We have a horse in this race, too! Nobody moves until I say so!”

“ _Estás jodiendo conmigo_ ,” Beerus growled. “Hang on—you little bastards, is that _my_ gun that you took out of _my_ car?” Mai pointed the gun toward him.

“You got a problem?” She said.

“Hey, knock it off, this isn’t a game!” Goku cried.

“What the hell is going on here?” Quitela screamed.

“We’re not just your ordinary street punks, you know! We’re the real deal, and we have plans for this city!” Pilaf boasted.

“That’s right! When Emperor Pilaf takes over, we’re going to rename Miami Pilaftopia!” The doglike boy said.

“Shu, I thought we agreed on Pilaftown?” Pilaf frowned.

“Really? I thought Pilaftopia had a much snazzier ring to it.” Shu said.

“Shut up!” Beerus snarled. “Get the hell out of here, you idiots don’t know what you’re walking into!”

“Looks like you boys had a deal that went wrong, right? And that spilled into our turf.” Mai said.

“Yes, so we’ll make you a deal. Each of you drop $50,000 right now, and we’ll let you live to kill each other another day. If not, then Mai here will splatter your brains all over this warehouse!” Pilaf said, a mischievous grin across his face.

“Are you kidding me? Boys,” Quitela said. The men surrounding him aimed their guns at the kids.

“Uh, Pilaf,” Mai said, now visibly shaking. “I think we may have forgotten to take into account the fact that they have more guns then we do.”

“Y-yes, I see,” Pilaf nodded. He was also trembling violently. “Well, miscalculations are a part of life, that’s true for everyone.”

“Miscalculations are a part of _life?_ ” She shrieked. “ _Your_ miscalculation is about to be a part of my _death!_ ”

Quitela groaned loudly.

“For the love of god, why are we still standing here? Just blast them alrea—“

BANG!

The kids screamed and fell to the ground. The men flinched. Goku had fired a single shot into the air.

“I thought I made myself clear. No one is hurting these kids,” he turned to the three of them. “You kids get out of here.” He said.

“Yes sir!” Pilaf said as he scrambled for the door.

“Sorry sir!” Mai said as she followed.

“Have a pleasant evening!” Shu said as he ran out last.

Goku aimed his gun at Quitela.

“You should have left with them, punk.” Quitela growled.

“Five against one isn’t sitting right with me,” Goku said. “And by all accounts, it sounds like you’re the one who messed up in the first place.”

“Damn right,” Beerus growled. “Tell me what happened.”

“You want to know? I didn’t make it to the meetup spot because I never planned on going there.” Quitela said.

“You sold my shit? My product that I paid you to move?” Beerus roared.

Quitela’s face scrunched a little.

“That was the plan. But the guy who was supposed to buy it never got it. I paid a driver to get it out of Florida by Tuesday but he’s missing, and so is his car.”

Beerus snorted. Then began laughing.

“Stop it. Hey, shut the fuck up!” Quitela pointed his gun at Beerus. Beerus shook his head.

“You tried to double-cross me and got double-crossed yourself? There have got to be awards for being that fucking stupid. So now you’re telling me that 28 kilos of cocaine could be anywhere? I know the DEA would love to get their hands on it. Did you even consider the repercussions of what you were doing?”

“I told you what I know, and now I’m going to get the hell out of town. When the Feds start swarming I’m going to be in Cuba.” Quitela said.

“The fuck you will,” Beerus snarled. “You’re not going anywhere.”

“I’ve got more guys than you. So what the fuck are you going to do about it? I’m not taking the fall for you or that faggot you hang out with.”

Beerus cocked his pistol.

“You watch your fucking mouth _¡o te vuelo la jodienda cabeza!_ ”

“Come on, then! Five against two, I like my odds!”

“Dammit,” Beerus growled. “I don’t suppose you’re some kind of prodigy quick draw are you?” He asked Goku.

“No, nothing like that. But I am a pretty good fighter.”

“What good is that going to do against five guys with guns?”

“I can fight guys with guns.” Goku said. Beerus turned to look set him.

“Bullshit.” He said.

“I wouldn’t lie about something like this!” Goku said with a laugh.

“If that’s true, then be my guest. Just don’t blame me if you get yourself killed.”

“I won’t. Are you ready?” He asked. Beerus nodded slowly.

“Go.”

Goku lunged. Beerus rolled out of the way as guns began firing. Goku ducked and swerved as the deafening sound of weapons firing blended into one cacophonous ring.

He rammed his fist into one man’s gut, ripping the gun from his hand as he crumpled in pain. He knocked him out with his elbow and hit another in the head with the butt of the pistol. He grabbed the man he had hit and threw him at another man. The last man standing seemed to be out of bullets. He threw his gun aside and put his fists up. Goku stepped forward, throwing all of his weight into one punch. The man was knocked out cold. Goku looked around for Quitela. He found a trail of blood along the cement floor. Quitela had half walked-half crawled to the door after being shot in the stomach.

“This isn’t over Beerus.” He said as he dragged himself outside. Goku stomped after him and grabbed him by the shirt. Quitela tried to struggle to get away but was too weak to fight, his bloodied hands slipped as he tried to push Goku’s hands away. Beerus stepped over to them.

“Nice work, kid,” he said. “Now what to do with the trapped rat?”

“Don’t do anything stupid, man! If you kill me, word is gonna get around. It could get all the way back to the King, and then you’d be in just as much trouble as I would.” Quitela cried.

“Maybe. Or, maybe I’d be rewarded for weeding out traitors. But here’s what’s going to happen,” Beerus smirked wickedly. “I’m not going to kill you.”

“Y-you’re not?” Quitela said. Goku was a little surprised as well.

Then he heard sirens in the distance.

“We’re not far from residential neighborhoods here, are we? I guess it’s not too surprising someone called the cops when they heard gunshots, is it?” Beerus reached into his pocket and pulled out a rather large baggie filled with white powder. He tucked it into Quitela’s pocket. “When the cops get here, you’ll tell them that this was a drug deal gone wrong. You’re not going to mention that me or my associate were here. You’re going to take the fall. If I find out you even hinted that we were here, I won’t just kill you, Quitela. I’ll kill your family, too. Understand?”

“You son of a bitch—“

“ _Do you understand?_ ”

“Dammit—yes, I understand.”

“Good. Drop him.” Beerus said. Goku dropped Quitela to the floor. The sirens were sounding very close now.

“We should probably get out of here.” Goku said.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

They darted out the back door. They ran through the streets but the sirens seemed to be coming from all sides. They found themselves crouched behind an empty shop as cops started closing in.

“Is someone back there?” A police officer called.

“Sorry, this is a no pig zone! The bacon plant is that way!” A familiar voice called. Goku peeked around the corner to see Shu and Pilaf standing in the road, making faces and rude gestures at the police. Mai peeked around from the other side of the shop.

“What are you doing? Get out of here! We’ll keep them distracted!” She whispered.

“You’re helping us?” Beerus said.

“Emperor Pilaf doesn’t like to owe anybody. Call us even.” She said. Goku smiled.

“Thanks, kids.” He said.

“Go!” She hissed, before running out to join her friends in mocking the police. As Goku and Beerus hurried off the opposite way, he heard the children running down the road, making oinking sounds.

They made it out of Overtown and back into Downtown. Beerus plopped onto the sidewalk outside of a liquor store, panting to catch his breath.

“‘A pretty good fighter,’” he said. “Jesus Christ, that was some G.I. shit. Where the hell did you learn to fight like that? Never mind, I probably don’t want to know.” Beerus laughed. Goku sat next to him.

“So...are we good?” He asked.

Beerus looked up at the palm tree above them, watching it sway slightly in the breeze.

“Your job was to get my cash and my gun back, and to scare the hell out of those kids. You didn’t do that.” He said.

“Oh, I see,” Goku frowned.

“However, since you apparently have some kind of superpowers, it would be stupid of me to let your skills go.”

“So I have a job?”

“I don’t know about that,” he said. “But I’ll be calling you back again for more work in the future for sure. I’ll decide then if I want to give you something more permanent.”

“Okay,” Goku grinned. “What about Kai?”

“What about him?” Beerus said. Goku frowned and folded his arms. “Okay, okay, fine. You take a pay cut on this job and your next one, we’ll call it even.”

“That sounds fair to me!” Goku said.

“You’re costing me a lot, you know,” Beerus said. “You had better be worth it.”

(If you liked this story and want to know how to get one of your very own, check me out [here](https://chi-chi-mcroberts.tumblr.com/post/627008462566653952))


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